


Of Lilies and Stags

by theonewhereshewrites



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: BAMF Lily Evans Potter, Background Blackinnon, F/M, James Potter is a Good Friend, Not Canon Compliant, Sirius Black & James Potter Friendship, Sirius Black & Lily Evans Potter Friendship, jily
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-05
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-07-07 05:59:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15902289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theonewhereshewrites/pseuds/theonewhereshewrites
Summary: Everything Lily Evans had ever felt towards James Potter had been all consuming. Whether it was all consuming hate for the first few years she knew him, or all consuming anger in the years following, everything she had ever felt for him was a ten.It was an obsession, of the odd sort. An obsession with proving him wrong, or besting him in class. An obsession with beating him, or coming out victorious. It was the reason her eyes found him in a crowded room, and trailed him during class. It was the reason he was so infuriating to her. It was the reason she found herself so drawn towards him.It was the reason that every interaction, every altercation, every instance between the two had been fuelled with fire and sparks. The only problem, was that somewhere along the way, the line between love and hate had become blurred, and the all consuming hate, was no longer hate at all.So what happens when after all those years of hating him, they're named Head Boy and Head Girl together, and suddenly, she can't hide from her feelings anymore?Rating for language, and eventual implied sexual conduct.





	1. Lily Evans

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be multi-chap, and the first few chapters of this story are going to take place before, and during the early years of Lily, James, Severus, and the rest of the Gryffindors at Hogwarts. But most of the fic itself will take place during sixth, and mainly seventh year. But it will take a few chapters to get there. 
> 
> The beginning of this story is going to flip-flop between Lily and James' POV slightly, but the later we get, the more it will be in Lily's POV.
> 
> Disclaimer: All characters belong to JKR, and unfortunately, I am not her.

The Evanses, of number twelve, Longdown Drive, were perfectly normal, always had been. They were the last people you’d expect to have anything out of the ordinary in their household, mainly because, they were the most ordinary family in all of the UK.

William Evans was a millwright at Bridgewater Mill, a paper mill located in the industrial town of Cokeworth, England. He was a tall, balding man, with sandy blonde hair and large, square glasses. Rose Evans was thin and short and had flaming orange hair, and a nose dusted with freckles. The Evanses had two daughters, Lily and Petunia, and Rose spent most of her time at home, looking after the two of them.

The Evanses were a content family of four, who lived everyone’s typical definition of a normal life, in an ordinary house, and worked ordinary jobs. They lived in a middle-class house, had a middle-class car, and lived their middle-class lives. No one would ever think that there was anything peculiar or out of the ordinary going on in their household, because they were just the Evanses.

The girls had been the best of friends growing up, playing in the park down Spinner’s End, chasing each other in the yard, and riding their bicycles through the fields of Cokeworth, ignoring the thick, smog of the factories. They were entirely content with their lives, laughing together, and going to school, until they weren’t.

Lily Evans had always been ordinary, that’s what she remembered growing up. She and her older sister Petunia had braided each other’s hair, and read books to one another, and helped their mother plant flowers in the garden. She had gone to school and gotten excellent grades, and she had spent most of her free time holed up in her room, nose buried in a book, or playing make believe in the park with Petunia. She had done very little in her life that could be considered daring, or rebellious in any way, shape, or form. There had never been a sign in her life that she was anything but ordinary, at least, not that she had noticed.

Rose and William Evans, however, had noticed something out of the ordinary about Lily. It wasn’t something they could explain, nor was it something they entertained for longer than a few minutes. But they had noticed odd things happening, only when Lily was around.

When she was six, and Lily had been helping her mother in the garden, they had planted lilies, petunias, and roses, per Lily’s request. All of which had different growing conditions, and lilies were supposed to be planted in the autumn, but to Lily’s insistence, they had planted all three. Her mother had tried to explain they they wouldn’t all survive, given that it was spring, and they lived in an industrial town full of smog, and the garden got little sunlight. But Lily had insisted that they plant all three, and she was absolutely positive that they would grow. To Rose Evans’ surprise, the next afternoon when she went out to the garden to water their flowers, a bed full of prospering roses, lilies, and petunias lay before her, only a day after they had been planted.

When she was seven, and Lily had suddenly decided that she didn’t like peas, they had magically disappeared from the counter. One minute the dish was there on the counter, and the next it was just gone, poof, no longer in sight.

Then there was the time when she was eight, and Petunia had been taunting Lily. It hadn’t been in a mean way, she was only teasing. But Petunia had sprouted up over the summer, and was now at least a head taller than Lily, and she _always_ reminded her of it. One afternoon she had been holding a jar of lollies above Lily’s head, taunting her that she couldn’t reach them, and then, just like that, the jar exploded, and the lollies went flying across the kitchen.

They were weird things, little things, always when Lily was angry, or sad, or scared. Things that didn’t make sense, things they couldn’t explain. Usually they caused confusion, sometimes chaos, and they would be the topic of conversation for a few minutes, until inevitably, the girls lost interest, and the entire ordeal would be forgotten about. But Rose and William Evans had always wondered what was causing these strange occurrences. They often wrote them off as freak accidents, or coincidence that they happened when Lily was around. But there was always a little voice in the back of Rose Evans’ mind, telling her it was something else entirely.

And so, on the dull, grey Thursday that it was discovered that Lily Evans wasn’t in fact ordinary after all, everything suddenly made so much more sense. Every incident, every occurrence, every little puzzle piece of Lily Evans’ life suddenly became clear, and it was all because of a boy who lived down Spinner’s End.

Severus Snape was an unpleasant boy, by anyone’s definition. He did nothing but read books, and study herbs and plants. He sulked about, and spent most of his time wandering the streets of Cokeworth. He had long, greasy black hair that hung in curtains around his face, and dull, grey eyes with very little behind them. He had been unhappy for longer than he could remember.

With parents that paid little attention to him, and spent most of their time fighting with one another, Severus Snape had spent most of his life alone. He had very little in common with the other boys that lived in Cokeworth, and anyone his parents knew, had no children, or had children that didn’t like him. It was because of this, that he spent most of his time alone. Until he met a ginger-haired girl in a park down Spinner’s End.

It was on a particularly dreary day that she first met the black haired boy that told her what she was. She was sitting in the grass, in a field of flowers by the swing set when she saw him. It was late fall, nearing the end of October, and she had been playing with the petals of a wilted daisy that sat amongst the flowers surrounding her.

He entered the park, looking scared and frightened, and took a seat on one of the swings opposite her. She saw the sad look on his face, so disheartened and alone, and she felt sorry for him. His shoulders were slumped, and his hair hung around his face in curtains, limp and dull. He reminded her a bit of the daisy she was holding onto, limp and sallow. She wished she could make him feel better, make him happy, give him life.

That’s when it happened, the flower in her hand, began to spring back to life. The petals began to unfurl, and the green returned to the stem. It was as if it were being reborn, rebirthed. _It was like magic._

It was then that the boy looked up from his place on the swing set and first noticed the girl on fire, in a field of wilted daisies. Her hair was like an inferno of curls, and her eyes as green as the evergreen trees that surrounded her. She looked like the sun, he thought, so full of warmth and light.

It was then that he noticed the flower in her hand, and the flowers that surrounded her on the ground, all alight with life, and swaying in the breeze. Around them, lay a field of wilted daisies, each looking more diminished than the last in the late autumn bite. But the ones surrounding her, the ones touching her skin, each was alive with passion. 

He knew what she was the moment he saw the flowers. He knew she was like him. Just as special, just as unique, just as extraordinary. Except, perhaps she was so much more than he. She emanated life, exuded passion, burst with ferocity. He thought that if the sun were a person, it would be her.

He on the other hand, was nothing of the same. Sure, he had abilities, ones that normal children didn’t. He could do things that most people, not even full grown adults, could. But it wasn’t the same as it was with her. She emanated life, whereas he brought death. When he was angry, he could bring ruin to whole things at once. He could take down buildings, or envelope fields in fire. He could destroy anything he wished, without so much as a blink of an eye. Perhaps that was why he was so drawn to her, the idea of life, the idea of light.

“You know, it takes a special kind of person to be able to do that to daisies,” he said to her, calling from his place on the swings.

She looked up at him suddenly, shocked that he had spoken to her. She obviously hadn’t expected him to say anything. He looked afraid, of what she didn’t know. Perhaps her, perhaps something else entirely. But every emotion he held was displayed on his face as he stared at her.

“What do you mean?” she asked at once, eyes darting around her at the flowers that touched her skin.

“Haven’t you ever done something you couldn’t explain?” he asked, standing up and walking towards her. “Made something explode, lit something on fire, made something disappear when you were angry, or scared?”

She thought about it for a moment, and realized that she had. Not in so much detail. But she remembered her mother wondering how the flowers they had planted had sprouted up over night, and she remembered making a glass jar of lollies explode when Petunia had held them out of her reach.

“You’re special, you know?” he said to her, taking a seat beside her in the flowers. The ones that she had previously brought back to life wilted as they touched his skin. “Ordinary people can’t bring flowers back to life.”

“I’m nothing special, I’m only ordinary,” Lily told the boy, unsure if she should be frightened of him or not.

“Believe me, you’re not ordinary.” He sighed, taking the flower from her hands and watching it wilt at his touch. “Just like I am not ordinary. I can do things that normal people can’t, and you can too, you know? I’m Severus.”

“Lily,” she introduced, smiling warmly at him.

“Lily.” He laughed. “It fits.” He gestured towards the flowers. “You’re a witch, Lily.”

It was this day, really, that everything changed in the Evans’ household, and in Lily Evans life. Because now, she wasn’t just an ordinary girl, she wasn’t living just an ordinary life, and she wasn’t living in an ordinary world. Now, there was a whole other part of her, a whole other universe that she knew nothing about. But she knew she was going to be a part of it, whether she wanted to or not.

Severus Snape, as it turned out, was the start of that other world. Because the day they met in the park down Spinner’s End at the age of nine, the day he told her what she really was, was the day her life changed forever. It was the day they became best friends, the day she really entered this whole other world, and from that point forwards, nothing could tear the two of them apart.

After that cold, grey Thursday, Lily spent almost all of her free time with Severus Snape. They sat in the park, looking through all of the books Severus brought Lily about his world, about her world, their world. She went over to his house, and although she was terrified of his parents, she never wanted to leave. Because even though his parents were always arguing, and paid little attention to Severus or her, it was a magical household, and it proved that the world she now knew she belonged to, existed.

Lily spent hours pouring over books that Severus had leant her, learning as much as she could about the magical community, absorbing as much as she could about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and dreaming of the day when she could one day attend it. She supposed, that was where her relationship with Petunia turned sour. And years later, looking back on it, she supposed it was mainly her fault.

Growing up, Petunia had been more ordinary than any person could possibly have been. She read books, she played with friends, she did her homework. Nothing she had ever done could be considered out of the ordinary, or interesting in the slightest. She was thin and bony, with a plain face, and an even plainer personality, and she was proud of it. Petunia liked being ordinary, she liked fitting in. It gave her a sense of belonging, and for the longest time, so had Lily. But now, Lily was not ordinary at all, not in the slightest. 

She still loved Petunia, and her parents, of course she did. She had just been so enveloped in this new world, one she was now apart of, that she had almost left her other world behind. The more time she spent with Severus, the more time she spent nose-deep in books about magical maladies, the less time she spent with Petunia, and it showed.

Gone were the days of her and Petunia playing in the yard, gone were the days of them braiding each other’s hair, and gone were the days of the sisters laughing and helping their mother in the garden. Before long, Petunia not only began to resent the world Lily was now apart of, but she began to resent Lily as well.

The day that Lily got her Hogwarts letter had been the breaking point. Her parents had been so proud to have a witch in the family. They thought it was the most marvellous thing in the entire world, and Lily couldn’t ever remember a time when she had been so excited. But the moment that tawny owl swooped in through the kitchen window and dropped the letter in her lap, that had been the moment her and Petunia’s relationship had been forever ruined. Because now, it was certain that Lily would no longer be a part of their world, not in a way that counted anyways. And so, from that day forward, the only words exchanged between the two sisters were when Petunia would call Lily a freak under her breath or when their parents weren’t around, and it had broken Lily’s heart.

Severus had told Lily all about Hogwarts. It was where he would be attending school, just like his mother had, just like all witches and wizards in Britain did. He had told her on hundreds of occasions that she would get her letter, that she would go to school with him in the fall. It was funny, really, because Lily knew she was a witch. The moment Severus had told her, she knew that he wasn’t lying, she knew it was the truth. But still, there was always this feeling that maybe she wasn’t, that maybe the whole thing was just some dream she had made up in her head, and that maybe Severus didn’t really even exist. But the minute that owl flew into her kitchen, the minute she opened that letter, she knew. She knew this was who she was, and that this was where she was meant to be.

Severus had taken her to Diagon Alley with her family a week later, and for a moment, she was sure she was dreaming, she was sure that the place didn’t really exist. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before. Sure, Severus had told her all about it. He had told her about Gringotts, the wizarding bank, and about Flourish and Blotts, and Ollivander’s. He had told her about Quidditch, and racing brooms, and about Eeyelops Owl Emporium. But seeing it up close for the first time, that was something entirely different altogether. The fact that an entire community, so unique, so wonderful, so magical, existed within the inside of London was absolutely mind-boggling.

All her life, she had felt ordinary. She had felt plain, normal, boring. But the moment she first stepped into the wizarding world, the moment she first held that 10 1/4” wand of willow, that was the first time in her life she ever felt like she belonged. It was like every question, every irregularlity, every unknown quantity in her life was answered with one look at that alley, and she had never been more grateful.


	2. James Potter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: All characters belong to JKR, and as always, I am not her.

The Potters, of Potter Manor, Inverness, were one of the most well-known families in the Wizarding World. They were one of the most well-respected, high profile families to all wizard-kind across the globe.

Fleamont Potter was a potioneer, and one of the most world-famous ones at that. Inventor of Sleakeazy’s Hair Potion, and the only current living male member of the Potter family, everyone in the wizarding world knew who he was. Euphemia Potter was a healer, and had worked for St. Mungos Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries nearly her entire life, up until her retirement at the age of 65 alongside her husband. Married into the Potter bloodline, Euphemia became a member of one of the wealthiest pureblood families in the wizarding world, when you considered both the Potter fortune, and the fortune that came from Fleamont having invented Sleakeazy’s Hair Potion. Together, they had one child, James Fleamont Potter.

James Potter had been a privileged child. Born to Fleamont and Euphemia, neither of whom had expected to be able to have a child by the time they reached fifty years of age, he had been, in their eyes, a miracle. With jet black hair that stuck up in every which direction like his father, and hazel eyes of gold like his mother, he had been one in a million, or so his mother liked to tell him. It was because of this, coupled with the Potter fortune, that James had been spoiled as a child. 

He had gotten the new broom he wanted when he was six years old, then again at nine, and so on and so forth. In fact, there were very few things in James’ life that he had wanted, and did not get. It wasn’t that he was a spoiled brat as a child, it was simply that the Potter’s never had to worry about something as mundane as money. They lived on a large portion of land in a home that was named after their family in Caithness, Scotland, and everyone knew who they were.

It wasn’t only the fact that that had money that meant they were a powerful family in the wizarding world. Sure, that was part of it. But in addition to Fleamont being a well established potioneer, they were also descendants of the famous Peverell Family, and the invisibility cloak that had once belonged to the third brother in the famous stories, now resided with James. They were about as powerful as a family could get in the wizarding world without being one of the original twelve. But with that, meant dealing with other pureblood families, something that James absolutely could not stand.   

The entirely of blood politics made James sick to his stomach, right from the moment he was old enough to understand them. And truth be told, he didn’t entirely understand them to this day. He didn’t understand why some people deemed half-bloods, or muggle-borns less worthy of magic simply because they weren’t from a pure bloodline. He didn’t understand the people that aligned themselves with dark magic, and he didn’t understand the want to “purify” the wizarding world. Sure, he was from a pureblood family, but that didn’t mean he would only ever associate with pure-bloods. None of it made any sense to him. He didn’t understand why people thought that one’s ability to do magic had anything to do with blood status, and the thought of it made him sick.  

Of course, most of the people he had grown up with had been from pureblood families. But that had less to do with the fact that his parents cared about blood status, and more to do with the fact that the pureblood families in the wizarding world all just knew one another. It was like some kind of close knit circle. One that, while his parents didn’t feel the need to be in, they didn’t feel the need to leave either. This, was precisely how he had known his best friend since childhood.

Marlene McKinnon was a gifted witch, right from the first day she showed signs of magical ability. But more so than being a gifted witch, she was a gifted Quidditch player, a skill that James too, possessed, even at the mere age of eleven. It was part of the reason they got along so well, and was the main reason that James hung out with Marlene, instead of her four brothers.

His mother and her mother had known each other since they were children, just like their grandparents had, and their grandparents, and so on and so forth. The McKinnon’s and The Potter’s had been friends for generations, and it appeared as though that was not going to end with James and Marlene.  

Their mothers were pregnant at the same time, and James and Marlene had been born a mere months apart. He knew Marlene’s name before he had even known his own name, and they had been inseparable ever since. As children they spent most of their time running around the grounds of Potter Manor, and flying through the trees that surrounded the land on their broomsticks. They had learned Quidditch together, and talked about Hogwarts together. They had played tricks on Marlene’s older brothers together, and they had played gobstones together. They had been inseparable for as long as they had been alive, and they still were to that very day.

She came from a pureblood family, with a long line of pureblood children, but she did not share the same views that most pureblood families did. She did not believe in blood purity, and she couldn’t have cared less about whether or not she was friends with powerful people in the wizarding world. It was one of the things James appreciated the most about her because he knew she wasn’t friends with him out of obligation. Her parents, of course, were a bit set in their ways still. They weren’t pureblood supremacists that wanted to eradicate the wizarding world of muggle-borns and half-bloods, but they still believed in blood status, and arranged marriages. In fact, for years, her grandmother had been trying to arrange James and Marlene to wed when they finished school. But Euphemia Potter was having none of that.

That being said, the amount of pureblood supremacists he had already dealt with by the age of eleven was almost unbearable, a fact he told his parents on a daily basis. They agreed with him on that, just like they agreed with him on blood politics. But according to his mother, they had a duty to fulfill as a powerful family in the wizarding world, and he would just have to put up with her high society parties. It’s not that they were every weekend, and truth be told, most of the time when his mother threw parties at their house, he and Marlene would hide away in one of the far off wings of the house and pretend no one else was around. But even with that, he still had to put up with it in some regards, and truth be told, he wanted nothing to do with it. But there wasn’t much he could do at a such a young age, and so he didn’t.  

It was because of the way James was raised that he was as entitled as he was, and he was in fact, very entitled. It wasn’t that he thought he was better than everyone else, it was simply the fact that he had been an only child in a wealthy family, and had never had to compete with anyone else. He asked for something, and his parents got it for him. It was this, and this alone, as it turned out, that caused the most problems for James as he grew older.

His entire life, he could count on one hand the amount of times that he hadn’t gotten something that he wanted. The first, had been when he was a young child, and he had asked his parents for a younger brother. At the time, James didn’t understand why he couldn’t have a younger sibling. Of course, by the time he was old enough to understand why, he was over the idea all together. The second time, had been when he was ten years old, and he told his father he wanted him to be at home with him, instead of out in the world working. Again, James eventually understood why this wasn’t a real possibility.

James Potter had never been scared of anything in his life. He had grown up in a home filled with magic, and by the age of eleven, knew far more magic than most people his age. He knew how to fly on a broomstick and play Quidditch, he knew how to brew basic potions he had learned from his father, and he knew how to mend broken bones after watching his mother. James couldn’t remember a single moment in his life that he had been scared to do anything. He had grown up in a house where the idea that he could do anything he set his mind to had been engrained in his brain.

But the day that James’ Hogwarts letter came in the mail, that was the first time in his life that James ever remembered being scared. Of course, he knew all about Hogwarts, and he had heard thousands of stories from his parents and their time there. His father had spent hours detailing the shenanigans he and his friends had gotten up to, and had told him secret upon secret that the castle held. He, as an eleven year old, probably knew more about the castle than some of the seventh years did. 

But going to Hogwarts, going away, meant that for the first time in his life, he would be away from his parents, alone. Sure, he knew other people in the wizarding community. He had grown up surrounded by children of his parents’ friends. But his parents had had children late, and most of the people he had grown up with were already graduated and had jobs.

But meeting new people, making friends? It was something he hadn’t been very used to growing up. Any friends he had, he had grown up with, or he had met through Marlene. He had never had to worry about making friends. He had grown up with everything he had ever wanted, surrounded by his family and his things. But now, now was something different.

He knew he had distant relatives around his age that would be attending Hogwarts with him. Most pureblood families were related in some way. But anyone he knew of that would be attending with him, he either hadn’t met, or hadn’t seen in a very long time. He knew Marlene, and that was it, and there was no saying they would even be in the same house. Even if they were, Marlene was a girl, and surely wouldn’t want to spend all of her time with him.

And so, that cool July afternoon, as James Potter sat beside his broomstick on the quidditch grounds of the Potter’s estate, reading over his letter, he felt nervous, and that was something he was not used to feeling.

“Why so glum, Potter?” A voice called from behind him, and he turned around to the sight of Marlene, sun-kissed from her family vacation to Australia.

“I suppose I’m a little scared, Mar,” he admitted to her as she sat down beside him, legs crossed.

“James Potter, scared? Never thought I’d see the day,” she quipped, knocking her shoulder against his.

“Seriously, Mar,” he laughed. “Aren’t you a bit scared about starting school in September? I mean, we’re about to be away from home for the first time in our lives, and we don’t really know anyone.”

“And what am I? A bogey flavoured Bertie Botts?” Marlene laughed.

“You know what I mean, though?” James said to her, leaning his head on her shoulder. “There’s no saying we’re going to be in the same house.” 

“James Fleamont Potter, you know damn well that you’re going to be a Gryffindor, and if I’m not, then I’m packing up and leaving, so sorry, you’re stuck with me,” she fired back, leaning her head against his on her shoulder. 

“Even so, you’re not going to want to spend every minute with me, you’re going to make friends with some of the girls,” James added, voicing his thoughts.

“James Potter, I am not going to just abandon my best friend since childhood,” she told him laughing. “Besides, you’re like the most charming person I’ve ever met, as if you’re not going to become best friends with every person you talk to.”

That got a smile out of him, and for the first time that day, he wasn’t quite so nervous.

“Besides, you’re mad fit, you’ll have birds following you around every second,” Marlene added, earning a loud bark of laugher from James.

That was one thing about his and Marlene’s friendship that James had always appreciated. There had never been anything romantic between the two, that would be weird. So they were both equally comfortable saying things like that to one another. Marlene knew James was good-looking, she’d have to be blind to not think so, just like James knew Marlene was attractive. But neither had ever felt anything for one another other than friendship, and they both appreciated that.

“James Potter, scared he wouldn’t make friends, _please._ ” Marlene scoffed, laughing to herself.

“You can’t blame me, the only friend I’ve ever had is you, and we’ve been friends since before either of us could talk,” James reminded her, fiddling with his broomstick with his left hand.

“And I would’ve left a long time ago if you’d been anything less than tolerable,” Marlene told him and he smiled, shoving her shoulder in response. “Now, are you up for a quick round of one-on-one Quidditch?” Marlene asked, standing up and pulling his broom up with her. 

He smiled at her, and in that moment, he knew, he was going to be okay at school. Because no matter how hard things got, no matter how difficult of a time he was having, he would always have Marlene, and nothing was going to change that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment & let me know what you think & if anything is out of character or super weird. 
> 
> Thanks!


	3. First Encounters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, all characters belong to JKR, and I am not her.

The morning of September the 1st, Lily Evans had been a nervous wreck. She had woken up at the crack of dawn, too excited to sleep any longer, and had spent most of the morning pacing nervously up and down the length of her room. Her trunk was already packed, and had been since the evening her and Severus had gotten home from Diagon Alley, but she had this peculiar feeling that she was forgetting something. She knew she was crazy. She had gone over her school checklist more than a hundred times.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL _of_ WITCHCRAFT _and_ WIZARDRY

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

1\. Three sets of plain work roes (black)

2\. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear

3\. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

4\. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupils’ clothes should carry name tags

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

 _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_ by Miranda Goshawk

 _A History of Magic_ by Bathilda Bagshot

 _Magical Theory_ by Adalbert Waffling

 _A Beginners’ Guide to Transfiguration_ by Emeric Switch

 _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ by Phillida Spore

 _Magical Drafts and Potions_ by Arsenius Jigger

 _Fantastic Beats and Where to Find Them_ by Newt Scamander

 _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_ by Quentin Trimble

OTHER EQUIPMENT:

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales

Students may also bring an owl OR a car OR a toad

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS

She had all the required clothes, all of her books, and all of the equipment she was required to bring, including a brown and white pygmy owl her parents had bought her named Artemis. She had everything she needed, even some things she did not need, and yet, still there was this odd, unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Perhaps it was the fact that she would be leaving home, that she would not be back until Christmas holidays, or perhaps it was the fact that she was about to enter an entire new world, one she wasn’t entirely sure she was prepared for. But she felt like she was going to throw up.

Eyeing the clock on her nightstand, she noted that it was now 5:30am, and if they were going to make it to London in time for the train to leave at 11am, they had to leave in half an hour. Deciding she had spent more than enough time pacing, Lily stepped into a pair of jeans and a dark green sweater, knowing not to wear her school robes to the train station.

She found her mother and father seated around the kitchen table, a full spread of pancakes, waffles, bacon and eggs in front of them, and Petunia hovering by the door uncomfortably. Taking a seat across from her mother, she began piling food onto her plate, despite the fact that she was fairly certain she was too nervous to eat.

Deciding she was too uncomfortable in the doorway, Petunia made her way to the kitchen table and sat down beside Lily, though she did not say anything to her, just like she had not said anything to her for several days now.

“Lilyflower,” her father began, looking at her with tears in his eyes. “Your mother and I are so proud of you, I hope you know that.”

“Daddy, of course I do,” Lily told her father, reaching out and touching his hand with a warm smile on her face.

“Really, a witch, never in a million years would I have thought…” He trailed off.

“Of course, it really does explain a lot,” her mother added, laughing with a nostalgic look on her face. “I cannot tell you how many times I found things disappearing, or shrinking, or even tripling in size. Your father and I thought we were going crazy.”

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” Lily inquired, wondering how long she had been showing signs of being a witch.

“We thought you and Pet would think we’d gone off our rockers,” Rose Evans laughed, eyes alight with pride. “I mean really, could you imagine? _‘Lily dear, quit making things vanish, it’s hard enough raising girls two years apart without one of them being a witch.’_ ”

“I suppose that would sound slightly mental,” Lily agreed, smiling at both of her parents.

Really, as she sat there, she couldn’t believe this was her life. Two years earlier, she had been nothing but a normal nine year old girl who read books and helped her mother garden. Now, she was a witch, about to leave for a boarding school to learn magic and spells.

When she had first told her parents what Severus had said, they had thought she was lying. They had thought she had been bored, and had made up some ridiculous story to entertain herself. It had taken nearly a week to convince them she wasn’t lying, and she had to drag Severus over to her house to prove it.

Of course, the moment they believed her, everything all made so much more sense. But they had taken it much better than Lily had expected. The thought that there was an entire other world out there, that there was a secret wizarding bank hidden miles under London, it was a lot to take in, even for Lily. But her parents had not only accepted it, they had embraced it, and when Lily had gotten her letter in the mail, they had been more than excited for her.

And so, as the Evanses pulled out of their driveway at 6am, Petunia and Lily in the backseat, Lily felt her stomach tie up in knots. But they weren’t so much nervous knots anymore as they were excited knots, and it was nothing compared to what she knew she would feel when she walked onto the platform for the first time.

James Potter, on the morning of September the 1st, had been something entirely different. He felt several emotions at once, the first being excited, the second being panicked, and the third being stressed, as he glanced at the time, and realized that it was already 10:15.

Of course, they would be apparating to the platform, so they didn’t have to leave _that_ early. But he hadn’t packed yet, because he was James, and his stomach was screaming at him in hunger.

Rushing about his room like mad, he began throwing things into his trunk all at once, not bothering to fold anything, or organize at all. Jumping into a pair of jeans and a blue sweater, he pulled on a pair of Converse sneakers, and glanced around his room at once. He snatched his school checklist off of his bedside table, ensuring that he had everything he needed, and looked longingly at his broomstick and at the note about first years not being allowed them. Then, as quickly as he had woken up, he was down in the kitchen at the table, his trunk floating down the stairs behind him.

His mother and father were already in the kitchen waiting for him, unsurprised that he had woken up as late as he had. It was now 10:30 in the morning. His parents were dressed in muggle clothes, but the type that businesspeople wore, and both had matching smirks at the state of his hair, which like usual, was sticking up in every which direction. His glasses sat crooked on his nose, and he likely looked as though he had just rolled out of bed, but he didn’t care. Today he was leaving for Hogwarts.

He had been nervous as of late. But after his talk with Marlene the day he had gotten his letter, he had felt considerably better. Now, his nerves were less about the thought of meeting new people, and more about the thought of what house he would be in.

Most of his family, for generations, had been in Gryffindor. Both of his parents had, as had their parents, but that didn’t mean he was going to be. He thought he had an uncle on his mother’s side that had been in Hufflepuff, and perhaps an aunt in Ravenclaw, but for the most part, The Potter’s were Gryffindors, and proud ones at that.

Their house was decorated mainly in scarlet and gold, and although his mother had told him it wasn’t, he was fairly certain it was because both of his parents had been Gryffindors. More likely than not, they had both just grown accustomed to their surroundings being decorated in those colours, and so, when they had moved into Potter Manor, it had just been instinct to decorate the same way. But James liked the colours, and he liked the idea of Gryffindor. He wasn’t sure he wanted to be in any other house.

“Dad, what if I’m not in Gryffindor?” James asked as he took a seat at the table, and began munching on a sausage.

“Then you’ll be in a different house,” his father replied, shrugging as if it were no big deal.

“But you were a Gryffindor, and so was mum, and so was ninety percent of the family. Wouldn’t you prefer if I were too?” James questioned, taking a sip of juice, straight from the carton, earning a look of disapproval from his mother.

“Son, I would love it if you were a Gryffindor,” his father began. “I would love it if you were in the same house that I was in, and your mother, and most of our family.” He took a sip of his tea. “But Gryffindor is not the only good house. In fact, they’re all good houses, and they all have their own reasons for being good houses. And whichever house the sorting hat puts you in, will be the right one, and your mother and I will be proud of you regardless.”

That eased most of James’ discomfort.

“James, can I give you some advice?” his mother said suddenly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. He nodded. “Don’t think about us. Don’t think about the rest of the family, or everyone else around you, or about wherever Marlene ends up,” his mother began, reading his thoughts as he wondered about Marlene. “Today, Hogwarts, the next seven years, they’re not about anyone else. They’re about you, and your education, and your experiences. You could be in Gryffindor, or Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff. Hell, you could even be in Slytherin. None of it will matter. You’re going to gain a family regardless of which house you’re in.

“You’re going to meet people, you’re going to make friends, you’re going to date, and you’re going to raise all kinds of hell with that bloody cloak, if you’re anything like your father.” She laughed. “And when it’s all said and done, you’re going to look back on your years at school, and you’re not going to be thinking about which house you were in, you’re going to be thinking about all of the memories you made, and the life you lived. Regardless of your house.”

James leaned over and hugged his mum in thanks, nerves now almost entirely subsided after her little speech. She was right. It didn’t matter which house he was in. He was going to be at the greatest school of witchcraft and wizardry in the world, and nothing could change that.

He was still nervous, of course he was. He would expect nothing less. But he was no longer nervous about the people, and the wheres, and the whys. Now, it was just nerves about starting school, and those were nerves he could live with.

In fifteen minutes, he would be on the train, sitting next to Marlene, babbling excitedly about the seven year journey they were about to begin, and that was enough for him.

Finishing his food off, he stood up and gathered his things, readying himself to apparate alongside his parents to King’s Cross Station. Thinking of Marlene, who was likely running as late as he was, if the past were any indication, he grabbed a few extra sausages and put them in a bag, grabbed onto each of his parents arms, and just like that, they were off.

When Lily Evans arrived at King’s Cross Station, she was certain she had never seen so many strangely dressed people in one place in her entire life. She supposed it was because wizard fashion was so different from muggle fashion, as she had learned during her trip to Diagon Alley. Therefore there were many people at the train station in wizard robes, and those that had tried to wear normal clothes were dressed about fifteen years out of fashion.

It was odd to say the least, and quite amusing as someone who knew why all of the strangely dressed people were there. She couldn’t imagine what it must have looked like to other travellers that were not aware that wizards and witches existed.

Following her mother and father into the train station, Petunia trailing reluctantly behind, Lily felt eyes on her everywhere she went. She supposed it was because she had an owl in a cage, in a train station in broad daylight. Though it could have been because there were other students that knew why she had an owl. After all, she wasn’t the only one.

Severus had explained to her how to get onto the platform, that she had to run at the wall between platforms 9 and 10. But he had also told her that muggles, as he called them, couldn’t get onto the platform. Therefore she had to say goodbye to her parents in the main terminal, and she wasn’t sure she was ready yet.

Turning to her mother, she wrapped her arms tightly around her shoulders, squeezing far harder than she ever had before, and she felt a tear hit her shoulder at once. Her mother was crying. This, in turn, had caused Lily to tear up slightly, and she pulled away before she began to bawl in the middle of the train station.

As she turned to her father, and pulled him towards her around his middle, she felt a wave of emotions hit her all at once as she realized the reality of what was going on. She was leaving, to boarding school. She wouldn’t see her parents for more than three months, and the longest she had gone without them before now had been a week.

“Don’t forget to write,” her father whispered into her ear, voice choking up slightly as he hugged her.

“Of course,” Lily told him, smiling into his shoulder. “Don’t forget, I’ll be back at Christmas,” Lily reminded him as she pulled away, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes.

“Please be safe,” her father begged. “And have fun, for us.”

“I want updates on how school’s going every week.” Her mother smiled at her.

“I’ll write you as soon as I get settled tonight,” Lily promised. “I’ll tell you all about the school and whatever house I’m in.”

“I love you, Lilyflower,” her father told her, hugging her once more.

“I love you too daddy,” she replied, and then pulled her mother in for one last hug. “You too Petunia.” She turned to her sister, who had not said a word to her since they left the house.

“Goodbye, Lily,” Petunia said to her, waving, not bothering to pull her in for a hug, or say she loved her back.

Lily waved once more, before turning and taking hold of her cart as she began moving towards the barrier between platforms. She held onto Artemis’ cage as she picked up speed, squeezing her eyes shut in fear that she would simply hit the barrier, and everything would go flying.

This was it, the moment she entered the wizarding world for good. This was the first day of the rest of her life. She breathed heavily, waiting for the impact of the barrier as she felt the cart pick up speed, but it didn’t come. Opening her eyes, she felt her mouth drop open at the sight in front of her, for there she stood, on platform 9 3/4.

In front of her was a scarlet steam engine, hissing and rumbling to life. Overhead, a sign said Hogwarts Express, eleven o’clock. Behind her, was a wrought-iron archway with the words _Platform Nine and Three-Quarters_ on it.

There were people everywhere, and not just students. Parents, grandparents, what looked like aunts and uncles had come to see people off. There were people dressed everywhere from normal clothes to violet cloaks and wizarding hats. Lily had never seen such a sight. The train went on for miles, so long, that she could not see the end of it. Students were climbing aboard the train, some were hanging out of the windows, waving at family members, and some stood, saying tearful goodbyes to their parents and siblings. It really was a sight.

She saw owls, and cats, and toads all across the platform, in addition to students playing with gadgets that she had never seen. Her eyes were as wider than they had ever been, and she wasn’t even on the train yet.

“Well look who finally showed up,” a voice called from her right, and as she turned, she eyed Severus, dressed smartly, head to toe in black, no parents in sight.

“Sev!” She called excitedly, running at him and hugging him at once.

They had seen each other only days before, but still, this felt like something else altogether. Finally, she was in the wizarding world, and she was there with Severus. She had never been so happy.

Following Severus onto the train, they walked several car lengths down, before settling into the first empty compartment they could find. Stowing their trunks overhead, and setting Artemis in her cage on the seat, Lily peaked her head out the door of their compartment, and looked in amazement down the length of the train.

Most of the students had filled the first few car lengths, but slowly their car was filling up too. Lily had never seen so many students all together at once. Some already wore school robes, and some were dressed like Lily. But everyone had this excited buzz about them, like they were alight with magic.

As she stared down the length of the train, eyes wide with amazement, that’s when it finally clicked. This was her life now. This was her world. For the next ten months, she would be surrounded by this, and nothing but. Magic was all around her, and soon, she would be doing it too. It was like some sort of dream, except, it was real, and Lily was certain that she had never been so happy.

As James Potter stood on platform 9 3/4 for the first time in his life, he felt the buzz of the environment around him at a level ten. It was nothing compared to the world he had grown up in. Of course, he had seen magic up close. Their entire household was full of magic. But his parents used magic for practical things, and given that they were a potioneer and a healer, they really didn’t use magic around the house that often. Nothing in comparison to Marlene’s house, whose father was an Auror.

This, was something else entirely. He had never been around so many children his own age at once before, especially not ones that were abuzz with magic. Most of the students were already on the train, given that it would be leaving in ten minutes. But there were still some stragglers, and several important looking students with badges on their chests that had a P on them. But James was waiting for Marlene, and if he knew anything about Marlene, it was that she was always late, more so than he was.

His parents had said goodbye to him on the other side of the platform, both knowing that if they really needed to see him, they could visit him at the school. They _were_ friends with the headmaster. Which left James with his trunk, and his owl Apollo, waiting nervously for Marlene.

A few minutes passed, and at exactly three minutes to eleven, Marlene and her parents walked through the barrier. Colin and Cassie McKinnon looked stressed to say the least. Likely because their daughter was three minutes away from missing the train, but they knew their daughter just as well as James did, and she did everything fashionably late. After a quick goodbye with Marlene, her parents pushed her in James’ direction, both aware of just how close they were to missing the train, and just like that, they were gone.

“Cutting it a bit close there, Mar?” James teased Marlene, earning the middle finger in response as she pushed him towards the train, and on they got.

Making their way up and down the cars, they began to search for an empty compartment, sighing in frustration when they realized that they were all full. _That’s what you get for being late, James._ Huffing in defeat, James followed Marlene to the emptiest compartment she could find, where she knocked on the door and slid it open.

Startled, the boy that sat curled up against the window sat up in alarm. He had sandy brown hair, and light brown eyes, with a bit of a crazed look on his face to match the crazy scars that protruded along the left side of his neck. Now standing, the lanky boy looked in confusion at Marlene and James, who were now blocking the corridor, as they stood staring at the boy and his scars.

“Sorry, but do you mind?” Marlene asked, gesturing to the mostly empty compartment. “All of the other compartments are full.”

“No, please,” the boy responded, sitting back down and gesturing to the seats around him.

James stowed his and Marlene’s things, shutting the door behind them, as they moved around in the compartment, settling into the seats across, and beside the boy. He had curled back up on the seat, legs tucked to his chest, but he looked painfully uncomfortable. James wasn’t sure if it was because of them, or if he was just always like that, but it was making him uncomfortable looking at him.

“I’m James, James Potter,” James introduced, deciding to break the uncomfortable silence. “This is Marlene McKinnon,” he continued, gesturing to Marlene.

“Remus Lupin.” The boy smiled, moving his feet down to the ground, and shaking James and Marlene’s hands.

“Are you a first year?” Marlene asked Remus, obviously picking up how uncomfortable he was.

“Yeah, you?” He questioned, picking at his nails. James nodded. “Cool.”

James wondered where the boy had gotten the scars, but he knew better than to ask. His mother would have berated him for just thinking of asking, not to mention actually doing it. Just then, the compartment door slid open once more, and a head popped in from the corridor.

“I’m gonna sit there,” the boy that had stuck his head in informed them, not bothering to ask, before he entered the compartment and took the seat beside James.

The boy had long, wavy black hair, and black eyes, but there was something mischievous about him. He was short and skinny, much like James, and as he looked at him, he couldn’t help but feel that he was slightly familiar.

“Woah, cool scars, how’d you get them?” the unnamed boy asked, rounding on Remus who laughed at the question. Okay, so maybe he wasn’t so uncomfortable after all.

“I tend to injure myself a lot. I’m clumsy,” Remus shrugged, not really explaining how he had gotten them, but he smiled as he spoke.

James looked in confusion from the boy, to Remus, and then to Marlene, and as he looked at Marlene, he noticed the look on her face. She was looking at the mystery boy, a curious expression on her face as she studied him. It was a calculating look, the kind she gave at James’ mother’s high-society parties, when she was trying to figure out who someone was. Then, like a lightbulb had gone off, she sat upright at once.

“You’re Sirius Black!” Marlene shouted suddenly, eyes alight with curiosity. The boy in question, apparently Sirius, shrunk slightly at his name.

Sirius Black. That was why the boy looked familiar. The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black was one of the largest, oldest, and wealthiest pure-blooded wizarding families in Britain, and they were known for being radical pureblood supremacists. They attended most of James’ parents parties, and James was certain that he had seen Sirius on more than one occasion. They hadn’t spoken, his mother had told him horror stories of how awful the Black family was. But he knew who he was. In fact, James seemed to remember his father telling him that they were distant relatives, in some way.

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” Sirius replied in disgust, and James found himself laughing at the tone he had used. “My family’s a bunch of nutters.”

“So you’re not some backwards pureblood supremacist who thinks that half-bloods and muggle-borns should die out and be stripped of wizarding status?” Marlene asked at once, point blank, causing James to look at her wide-eyed.

“Definitely not.” Sirius laughed. “I’ve met enough psychotic pureblood wackjobs to last me an entire lifetime without being one myself.”

“I like you already,” Marlene stated. “I’m Marlene McKinnon. This is Remus Lupin, and James Potter,” Marlene introduced gesturing around the compartment.

“James Potter, you’ve got a fancy house.” Sirius laughed. “I watched you run the other direction when my family got there,” he told James, a wicked grin on his face. “I think we’re going to get along just fine.”

And as James sat there, staring at the mischievous grin of one Sirius Black, for a moment, he didn’t have a single worry in the world. He had a feeling he and Sirius would be very good friends, and he wasn’t often wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think, and feel free to call me out if anything is out of character or super weird. 
> 
> feel free to come scream at or with me on tumblr too if you want 
> 
> https://habitatforhufflepuffs.tumblr.com


	4. The Wrong Foot

Three compartments down, entirely unaware of the trouble that was brewing so close by, sat Lily Evans, and Severus Snape. The train had left several hours earlier, and after a very long discussion about houses, and teachers, and reasons why Slytherin was the best, Lily had retired to her book, tired of listening to Severus ramble about house values. Severus had taken it upon himself to read through the first few chapters of the first year potions book, seeing as there was very little else to do.

Lily had just reached the halfway point of Pride & Prejudice, for the hundredth time, when she was interrupted by a very loud bang. Cheers and laughter followed moments later, and then, two more bangs. This caused a whole string of things to follow. Compartment doors slid open, shouting could be heard, followed by loud hoots and hollering. Then, one more bang, followed by purple smoke flooding the corridor of the train and seeping into their compartment.

Irritated, and slightly intrigued by the commotion, Lily and Sev crept out of their compartment, and towards the sound. In the midst of the corridor, surrounded by a group of laughing students, sat a lanky blonde boy, covered hear to toe in soot and purple powder, below the grinning faces of two messy haired boys, and a blonde girl.

The first was skinny and lean, like a beanpole, with the messiest head of jet black hair Lily had ever seen, and bright hazel eyes rimmed with a pair of round spectacles. While the second, still skinny, but slightly broader shoulders, had equally messy, wavy black hair, and grey eyes to boot, stood beside him. The blonde girl, who was still hid in a compartment behind them, had her head poked into the corridor, but looked to be laughing alongside them. Her hair was braided into a long plait, and bright green eyes shone with joy as she watched the mess that had drifted into the corridor.

All three wore matching grins of pride, their eyes glittering with mischief as they stared down at the boy on the floor, who was also grinning. But it wasn’t the pride or the mischief that Lily noticed the most, rather it was the smug arrogant air that seemed to float about the two dark haired boys. It was as if they thought they were better than everyone else, above everyone else. This bothered Lily the most about the two boys. If there was anything Lily hated, it was arrogance. Petunia was arrogant, and it drove Lily insane.

“Mate, that was excellent, let’s try it again,” the spectacled boy said to his friend, only to receive a high five in response. The statement in itself, was enough for Lily to intervene. She did not want another explosion.

“Excuse me, but if the two of you would like to not act like arrogant berks for ten seconds, some of us are trying to read in peace without worrying about you two blowing up the train,” she all but shouted at them.

“Gotta make a name somehow, don’t I?” the spectacled boy responded with a smirk, winking at her as he spoke. This earned only sharp huff in response, and a slam of her compartment door behind her in response.

Severus, who Lily now realized was still in the corridor, could be heard shouting incoherent words at the boys, only to moments later, stomp back into their compartment, and angrily slam his potions book back open without saying a word.

As the hours ticked by, and Lily and Severus sat in silence, Lily found herself wondering how much longer it would be before they would be arriving. She was still wearing street clothes, as was Sev, and she figured they ought to be changing soon before they got to Hogwarts. Severus had been buried in his potions book for hours, and although Lily had so many more questions, most regarding the school, she did not interrupt him.

The sky was getting dark as Lily looked out the window. She could see mountains and forests under a deep purple sky as the train lugged forward and forward, seemingly getting slower and slower.

Finally, five or so minutes later, Severus closed his book, and suggested that they change into their robes. Agreeing, Lily gathered her robes, and headed down the corridor to the loo, leaving Severus to change in the compartment.

It was strange, looking at herself in a uniform. She had gone to public school most of her life, she had never worn one before. But somehow, it looked right. Of course, it looked a little strange, seeing as how anyone that was not a first year, had ties and scarves on to match their house colours. But the uniform itself, felt right on Lily.

She arrived back at their compartment just as she felt the train slowing even more so than it had been when she’d left, and she felt her nerves triple in intensity.

A voice echoed through the train: “We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes’ time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately.”

Lily felt her entire body buzz with excitement and nerves, and Lily noticed, Severus looked slightly more uncomfortable than he had a few minutes earlier. It made her feel a little better, that he was nervous too, and not just her. They put their books back in their trunks, and joined the crowd thronging in the corridor.

The train slowed right down and finally stopped as people begun to push their way toward the door and out onto a tiny, dark platform. Lily shivered at how much colder it was here than London had been, and she felt the hair on her neck stand up. A lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Lily heard a deep, scruffy voice: “Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here! C’mon, follow me — any more firs’ years? Mind yer step! Firs’ years follow me!”

A man had come into view, if that’s what you could call him. He looked more like a giant, in Lily’s opinion. But he towered over everyone, wild brown hair sticking up, as he made his way down the platform. It made him easy to follow, seeing as he was twice as tall as any of the first years, and before they knew it, they were following the man down a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Lily couldn’t see a thing.

“Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,” the man called over his shoulder, a heavy accent coming through. “Jus’ round this bend here.”

There was a loud “ooooh!” as the path opened onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.

“No more’n four to a boat!” the giant man called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Lily and Severus were followed into their boat by the two messy haired boys from the train corridor. _Great._

“Everyone in?” the large man shouted, who sat in a boat at the front all by himself. “Right then — FORWARD!”

And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.

“Hey Red, how was your book?” one of the boys from the train called from behind her, the other snickering in response. Lily did not respond.

“Was it all you’d dreamed it’d be?” the other boy called, stepping on Lily’s nerves. “Did it live up to all of your greatest exceptions?”

“Shut it right now,” Severus suddenly snapped, turning around and glaring at the boys.

“Oh my, does little red riding hood have a boyfriend?” the second voice called into the darkness, and Lily felt her anger bubbling up inside of her.

“I said shut it or else,” Sev threatened again, voice lowering menacingly.

“And what if I don’t? What are you gonna do? Wipe your nose on me?” the first boy called again, and this time, Lily heard the distinct sound of skin hitting skin, and before she knew what was happening, a splash.

“Wha’ the ruddy hell is going on back there?” The large man shouted, stopping his boat as the others passed him.

It was hard to tell what was going on in the dark, but as Lily looked back and noticed the two boys from the train were still in her boat, she could only come to the conclusion that it was Severus that was flailing about in the ice cold water below. Panic struck Lily at once, before the giant man plunged his arm into the water, and yanked Severus by his robes up at once, landing with a splat in his own boat.

“You are unbelievable,” Lily spat at the two behind her, not saying another word as they crept the rest of the way across the lake and towards the castle.

“Heads down!” yelled the man as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles. Lily could hear Severus’ robes dripping water from behind her.

“Alright, follow me!” the man called, checking the boats as people climbed out before he began walking up a passageway in the rock. Following the man’s lamp, they came out at last onto smooth, damp grass, right in the shadow of the castle. Then, walking up a flight of stone steps, everyone crowded around the huge, oak front door. “Everyone 'ere? You there, we’ll get you into a set of dry robes once we're inside.”

He raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door. The door swung open at once, and they were greeted by a tall, black-haired witch in emerald green robes. She had a very stern face, and Lily immediately knew that she was not to be trifled with.

“The firs’ years, Professor McGonagall,” the man said to her. “We had a bit o’ an accident,” he explained, gesturing to Severus.

“Thank you, Hagrid.” She smiled at the man Lily now knew as Hagrid. “I will take them from here. If you would take this young man to get changed, and meet us back here in a few minutes,” she asked, gesturing to a dripping wet, now shivering Severus.

Severus met them again, several minutes later after Professor McGonagall had led them into the entrance hall, which was so big, Lily was certain her house would fit in it, more than once. The stone walls of the castle were lit with flaming torches, and the ceiling was too high to make out, and Lily thought it looked better than she had imagined. It looked just like she had expected a school of magic to look.

To the right, Lily could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway, and Lily supposed the rest of the school must already be here. Instead, however, Professor McGonagall showed them into a small chamber off the hall, and they crowded in at once, all vibrating with nerves.

“Welcome to Hogwarts,” Professor McGonagall said with a tight-lipped smile. “The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your Houses. The sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your House will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House common room.

“The four Houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each House has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your House points, while any rule-breaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House cup, a great honor. I hope each go you will be a credit to whichever House becomes yours.

“The sorting ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting.” She glanced towards the two boys from the train, who appeared to have gotten slightly muddled since the boats.

Lily, who now stood beside a dry Severus, felt her heart in her stomach. She was sure she had never been so nervous. Severus had told her about the sorting ceremony. She knew all she had to do was sit on a stool and try on a hat, but she was still excruciatingly nervous. What if there had been some mistake? What if she wasn’t a witch after all, and this entire thing was just some elaborate setup? What if she put the hat on, and nothing happened?

Appearing as if from nowhere, Professor McGonagall returned, and led them out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall, and Lily gulped as they entered.

James Potter, from his place at the back of the group of the students, was certain he hadn’t ever seen anything like it as they entered the Great Hall. It was lit by thousands of floating candles, hovering midair over four long tables where the rest of the students were sitting. The tables were littered with golden goblets and plates, and at the top of the hall, was another long table where the teachers were sitting. As Professor McGonagall led them up to the front of the room, James glanced upwards and noticed that the ceiling wasn’t really a ceiling at all, rather it was a blanket of velvety black, dotted with flickering stars.

James stood with Sirius, Remus, and Marlene, glancing around the room in amazement as Professor McGonagall began calling people to the front of the room one at a time, and placing the hat on their heads. Only a few minutes passed before Sirius’ name was called, and James was certain he had never seen someone look so nervous. So much so, that it looked like he might throw up. The hall had fallen silent at the calling of his name, and as the boy placed the hat on his head, James swore he saw him gulp. They had spoken on the train about houses, and Sirius had been certain he was going to be in Slytherin, he was a Black after all, and he had said his parents would be furious if he had been sorted anywhere else.

Several minutes went by in which Sirius looked dangerously on the verge of passing out, and then—

“GRYFFINDOR!” the hat shouted at once, and simultaneously there were both gasps, and cheers erupting from the table on the far left. Sirius, however, looked even sicker than before he had put the hat on, walking off and taking a seat at the table in a zombie-like state.

James could hear people whispering around him ("A Black? In Gryffindor? It’s unheard of!"). But he had begun to tune it out, eyes on the front of the room as student was called up one by one. He had barely been paying attention when McGonagall had called out “Evans, Lilian!” and the red-headed girl that had shouted at them on the train, and in the boats, walked up to the front and sat on the stool. The hat couldn’t have been on her head more than two seconds when it shouted, “GRYFFINDOR!” and a look of intense relief washed over the girls’ body as she joined Sirius at the Gryffindor table.

People were called up, one by one, and House was called out one after another. James had lost track of which names had gone to which Houses, though he watched in amazement, as both Marlene, and Remus, were sorted into Gryffindor as well.

The knots in his stomach roped themselves tighter and tighter as the group of students standing there got smaller and smaller, and they got further and further into the alphabet. Finally, Pettigrew, Peter, had been sorted into Gryffindor before him, and then his name was called.

“Potter, James!” he heard, and the room fell silent. Like he said, The Potter’s were well known. His stomach twisted and lurched uncomfortably as he sat down with shaky legs, feeling slightly like a bowl full of jello. And then, before the hat was even fully on his head—

“GRYFFINDOR!” The hall erupted into cheers, and a wave of relief washed over James body at once.

Joining Sirius, Remus, and Marlene at the Gryffindor table, he sighed in contentment as the rest of the sorting came to a close, and before he knew it, they had eaten and were being whisked away to their dormitories.

It was odd, because James had a feeling he would be sorted into Gryffindor, nearly his whole family had, after all. But there had still been a doubt in the back of his mind, a tiny little voice whispering that he wasn’t Gryffindor material. But as they walked the corridors of the castle, the castle he had dreamed about being in for years, alongside the rest of the Gryffindors, he couldn’t help but feel right at home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos & Reviews are always appreciated & if anyone wants to shout at or with me, please come shout at me on tumblr. 
> 
> https://habitatforhufflepuffs.tumblr.com


	5. The Last Straw

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a good portion of the dialogue in this chapter is taken directly from Snape's Worst Memory, but I did try to put my own spin on it a little bit, but as always, these characters and that scene in particular belong to JKR.

Lily Evans was a clever witch, as it turned out. She excelled at Charms, even more so at Potions, and there were very few things that she struggled with. She had known, right from her very first day at Hogwarts, that this was a place that she belonged. She knew that her entire life, every moment of feeling ordinary, every second of feeling normal, had all been because she wasn’t meant to be a part of that world. She was meant to be a part of something else entirely, another world entirely. And right from the very first second she held a wand in her hand in Ollivander’s, she knew that this was where she was supposed to be.

Gryffindor, as it turned out, had felt even more so like home. At first, she had felt like a fish out of water, who wouldn’t? She and Severus had been separated, and not only did she not know anyone, she didn’t know anything. Of course, she had read books and books on the magical world. But she was a muggle-born, and while she had grown up with telephones and postal service, everyone around her had grown up with letter by owl, and floo network communication.

But after no time at all, she couldn’t have imagined a life where she wasn’t at Hogwarts, in Gryffindor. Because this was where she belonged. It was where she thrived. It was where she knew the rest of her life would be, the magical world.

James Potter, as it turned out, had very little to worry about, right from the moment he first stepped foot on platform 9 3/4. Because as it turned out, he was excellent with people. He was charming, and clever, and caused more trouble than anyone else in the entirely of Hogwarts, except maybe Sirius Black. But as it turned out, he had found a place where he belonged.

He excelled at most classes, with the exception of perhaps Potions, which oddly enough, was much harder than his father had made it out to be. He still did alright, but there were other things he was much better at. One being Transfiguration, and the other being causing havoc. He knew from a young age that he and Marlene had been good at causing trouble. But being at Hogwarts, knowing the castle’s secrets, with the other members of Gryffindor Tower, was a whole other game entirely, and he was excellent at it.

But more so than school work and causing mischief, James Potter was known for his Quidditch skills. Making the House team in second year, a feat that almost never happened, James had made his name known on the field. He had played as a Seeker in his first year, moving to a Chaser in second year as a position opened up, and by the time they reached fourth year, he was the youngest Quidditch Captain in Hogwarts’ history, and with good reason.

Gryffindor had not lost the Quidditch Cup, or the House Cup yet since James had started at Hogwarts, and that in itself was a miracle. James and his friends got into trouble more often than any other student in the school, and had collectively lost more points than the rest of the school combined. Which was why it was such a miracle that they hadn’t lost either cup yet. But, despite how much trouble they caused and how many points they lost, James and his friends gained more than their fair share back.

Their first few years at school, Lily Evans had very little to do with James Potter. In fact, they paid such little attention to one another that you could’ve sworn they weren’t even aware of one another’s existence, after that first night in the castle. If it weren’t for the single fact that James was who he was, you could’ve sworn Lily didn’t even know that James existed. But James Potter was anything but a fly on the wall. He was loud and obnoxious, and everything he did became a spectacle. Once you added his friends into the mix, it meant it was physically impossible to not know who James was, or who their friends were.

Sirius Black was James’ right hand man, and in many ways, he could’ve been James’ twin. They were both devilishly handsome, everyone knew that, even Lily Evans. It was pointless to try and deny it. But while James had more of a boyish charm to him, Sirius was attractive in a dangerous and rebellious kind of way. He was the kind of boy your parents told you to stay away from, the kind of boy you dated when you were rebounding from a bad breakup. He had long wavy black hair, the kind that you wanted to run your fingers through, and dark, mysterious eyes, ones you could get lost in. And in many ways, he was very much the “It” boy of Hogwarts. He was wicked clever, though he didn’t show it very often, and he knew just the right ways to get into trouble. He was witty, and charming, and could talk his way out of virtually anything, except maybe detention from Professor McGonagall. Sirius Black was in many ways, the whole package, if the package you were looking for was a good time.

Remus Lupin, on the other hand was something else. He was sarcastic, and witty, and had a comeback for absolutely everything. And while he may not have been as charming as Sirius and James, there was something about him that drew people in. Maybe it was the way he spoke, or maybe it was his charming smile, but everyone seemed to trust him. He wasn’t attractive in a dangerous way like Sirius, or in a boyish way like James. Rather he was good looking in a nice, kind of boy you take home to meet your parents kind of way. While there was still something mysterious about him, something peculiar, something intriguing as you wondered where his scars had come from. He was the nicest of the lot, and truth be told, most people didn’t understand how he managed to fall in with the likes of the boys. Truth be told, Lily liked spending time with Remus, though she didn’t often see him when he wasn’t with his band of lunatics. And if he weren’t so preoccupied with his goons, she could see them being quite good friends.

Then there was Peter Pettigrew, and no one really knew how he ended up friends with the other three. Sure, he fit in in a weird sort of way. He liked to cause trouble, liked to wreak havoc on the school like James and Sirius. But it was in less of an obvious way. He seemed to just find himself thrown in their schemes and helping out, rather than leading the team like James, Sirius, or sometimes Remus did. He wasn’t good looking in a typical way, at least not in an obvious way like the other three. He was still cute, but in the way a puppy is cute, rather than a boy you stare at in class. And while the other three seemed to be excellent at most things they did, Peter seemed to struggle with most things. He had to work hard to keep up with the other three in class, and he always seemed to get places last. But still, there was no doubting he was one of them, through and through.

In their first year alone, they had made such a spectacle of themselves that seventh years knew who they were, and that never happened. By the time they reached fourth year, the boys had made such a name for themselves that they were referred to as The Marauders, and everyone knew who they were.

Of course, not everyone liked them, especially not the Slytherins. In fact, that was likely where Lily and James got off on the wrong foot in the first place. Part of it surely had to do with House rivalry, and another part to do with Quidditch rivalry, but it was a known fact that the Gryffindors and Slytherins did not get along. Partially because they were expected to hate one another, and partially because the two Houses were just so different. One valued bravery, the other cunningness. One was big on strength, and the other power. One courage, the other manipulation. They were polar opposites, really, and it was no surprise that the two Houses had been at one another’s throats for centuries.

That being said, as much as the Slytherins hated the Gryffindors, and not just the Marauders, they couldn’t deny that those four boys were the most popular boys in school. All of the girls wanted to date them, and the boys wanted to be them, or be friends with them. Even the teachers liked all of them, despite the chaos they caused and the detentions they served.

Surely part of it was the fact that in addition to being one of the only sources of enjoyment in the castle, the Marauders were also very intelligent. But more so than anything, it was just who they were as people. Because as cocky, and as arrogant as they were, they were four of the most genuine people you could come across. Whether it was genuine hate, or genuine enjoyment, they were straightforward guys. They did everything at a hundred and ten percent, and there was no denying that they gave everything their all. It just so happened, that giving everything their all, included tormenting Slytherins, one in particular, that Lily was quite close with, and that in itself, was the beginning of Lily and James’ relationship.  

Severus Snape was a relatively unpleasant person, if you asked anyone other than Lily Evans. Even his fellow Slytherins agreed that most of the time, he was in a sour mood. He had long, greasy black hair that hung in curtains around his face, and a hook nose. He was tall and lanky, but in more of an unhealthy looking way than anything. He excelled at Potions, more so than any other student in his year, except maybe Lily Evans herself, and he kept to himself as much as he could. The only exception, being Lily Evans, much to the Gryffindor girls’ dismay.

He had grown up in a relatively unhappy family, and despite the fact that he was a half-blood, he had known long before he was at Hogwarts that he was going to be in Slytherin. His mother came from a long line of Slytherins, and despite the fact that his mother had married a muggle, he stood for everything that Slytherin did. This, of course, meant that he could not have been more different than those in Gryffindor House, and this is where the first problem between his and Lily Evans’ friendship arose.

Neither knew who threw the first hex, nor who started the feud between the two, but James Potter and Severus Snape hated one another with equal intensity. Whether Severus was goading the Gryffindors in the corridors, or James was taunting the Slytherins in class, the hatred only grew stronger every day. James was arrogant, that was a fact, but couple that with the way he and Sirius Black strutted about the castle, it was enough to make Snape absolutely detest the guy. They didn’t even know what year the feud had started in. Sure, they had disliked each other off the get go in first year, but neither were really sure when the feud had shifted from angry glares in the corridors to throwing hexes on the grounds. But no matter where they went, no matter who was around, someone would walk away with some form of injury.  

It was a trend that the entire population of Hogwarts was used to. The two had been going at it since before any of them could remember, and more often than than not, other people got involved as well. Whether it was the other Marauders defending James, or Lily standing up for Severus, the fights never remained between the two. More often than not, fellow Slytherins would get involved and the fights would land three of more people in the Hospital Wing. But after years of rows, after hundreds of scuttles in the corridors, no matter what happened, people never got tired of watching the fights lay out. Every time, without fail, a crowd would gather, and things would escalate.  

This, in itself, was Lily Evans’ biggest issue with James Potter. Sure, she had never liked the guy. Right from their first encounter on the train in first year, they had gotten off on the wrong foot. He was cocky, and arrogant, and had an ego the size of an erumpent. But it wasn’t until fourth year that Lily really begun to detest the guy. He had never gotten along with Severus, this Lily knew. But the two had been bickering for longer than Lily could remember, and there wasn’t much to do to stop it. It was in fourth year, however, that their pointless fights were no longer pointless fights. Because it was in fourth year, that James begun seeking Severus out, for the sole purpose of tormenting him. She supposed some of it had to do with the fact that they had been feuding for so long that James had just upped the ante, but that didn’t make it okay. Before long, James was seeking out not only Severus, but the other Slytherins and tormenting them too.  

By the time they had reached fifth year, Slytherin House as a whole, had become the butt of almost every single prank the Marauders pulled. Whether it was configuring their breakfast in the great hall, or causing explosions in the Slytherin common room, everything they did, affected the Slytherins. It wouldn’t have been such a big deal, if the pranks were harmless pranks. But several had landed students in the Hospital Wing, and some had even cause violent altercations to arise between the two Houses. Then finally, the pranks had begun affecting the other Houses as well. Hufflepuffs became innocent bystanders, and Ravenclaws collateral damage. Lily had even ended up in the Hospital Wing herself more than once.  

It was because of this, that Lily had grown to absolutely detest James Potter. No, as a matter of fact, she loathed James Potter. She wished he would just drop out of school, or transfer, and never speak to her again. She longed for the days that they barely acknowledged one another’s presence, instead of her getting caught in the crosshairs of his and Severus’ feud. It was because of this, that Lily and James went from not only arguing about Severus, but arguing in general, about quite literally everything. It was because of this, that Lily almost hexed James Potter into oblivion the first time he asked her out in fifth year.  

She remembered the moment like it was yesterday. They had just finished dinner at the welcome back feast the first night in the castle, and for once, all of the fifth year Gryffindors had had a successful meal sitting together. They almost never dined all in one group, given that Lily had grown to detest not only James, but their friends as a whole, with the exception of Remus. But Alice Prewitt had just started seeing Frank Longbottom, who just so happened to be sitting with the Marauders when they entered the Great Hall for dinner that evening. And so, for the first time since third year, all of the Gryffindors in their year had a meal together, and for once, it hadn’t ended in a fight. In fact, Lily distinctly remembered laughing at something James Potter had said, something that caused an odd calm to come over the group of fifteen year olds.  

Perhaps it was the laughter that possessed James to do what he did, or perhaps it was the fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about running his hands through Lily’s hair since he had seen her on the train that afternoon. But something about her just felt so much different to him that year. And so, on the way back to Gryffindor Tower, he pulled her back behind everyone else, ran a hand through his perpetually messy hair, and asked, “Go out with me, Evans?”  

And so, with a frown on her face, and an angry line across her forehead, Lily gave James the most disgusted look she could muster, and replied, “You really think I would ever want to go out with someone as arrogant, and as pigheaded as you? You must be joking, Potter.”  

He didn’t know when it started, the way he felt about Evans. He didn’t necessarily know if he did really _feel_ anything towards her. He just knew that at the end of fourth year, he had thought of her as no more than Severus Snape’s best friend, and a girl that was in his classes. Then, some time between then and fifth year, he had noticed how shiny her hair was, and how green her eyes were. He had noticed the dimple in her left cheek, and the freckles that dusted across her nose and cheeks. He had not only noticed her, but he had noticed how much it bothered him that she didn’t seem to notice him. And so, he decided, if she didn’t notice him, he would make her.

At the time, Lily had thought nothing of it. In fact, Lily thought she would go about the rest of the year ignoring James Potter, and pretending he didn’t exist. She planned on having little to no contact with him following that encounter. Of course, what she didn’t realize at the time, what she would soon come to regret, was that her refusing James in such a way, caused something to spark within him, something of a challenge.  

Perhaps it was the way she had refused him. Perhaps it was the fact that she had bruised his ego. Maybe it was even the fact that she had seemed to detest him that made him so determined to change her mind. But that day, that first refusal, set the two of them on a path of absolute destruction. Because while Lily was determined to ignore James Potter at all costs, James was determined to see Lily Evans at all costs.

Beginning the following week, James begun asking Lily out, as loudly, as publicly, and as frequently as humanly possible. Across the Great Hall, in the common room, over the loudspeaker at the Quidditch Pitch, were only a few of the ways in which he had done so. And with every date request, Lily only grew to detest the boy more.  

Not just because he wouldn’t accept no for an answer, but because he thought she should like him simply because everyone else seemed to. He thought he was Merlin’s gift to the world, and every girl should be falling at his feet to go out with him. He was arrogant, and egotistical, and on top of that he was a bully. Not just to Severus, but to others too, and he got away with it. It drove Lily absolutely mental, and she wanted nothing to do with it.  

But as the requests grew more frequent, and more public, so did Lily’s rage for the boy. And before they knew it, the two had begun shouting at one another just like he and Severus once had before the hexes begun somewhere between third and fourth year. James would ask Lily out, and before they knew it, the two were in a shouting match in the middle of the corridor. In fact, they had become such a debacle, that Lily and James’ fights were now more of a spectacle than James and Severus’ fights. Because where James would once spend his free time tormenting Severus, he now spent it asking Lily out. Crowds begun to gather to watch James and Lily shout, instead of James and Severus fight, and before they knew it, their fights had become legendary.  

They fuelled the Hogwarts rumour mill, and bets were placed on when the next fight would take place, and where, and what colourful insult Lily would throw at James. So far, the most frequent by far was “you arrogant, bullying, toerag.” Their arguments had become a constant in the school, and teachers had even taken to separating the two in class to stop bickering from occurring.  

By the time exams had rolled around at the end of fifth year, James had asked Lily out no fewer than forty seven times, by Sirius’ count, and Lily and James had been in no fewer than fifty four screaming matches, by Remus’ count. All year they had been occurring, even when James hadn’t asked her out, and every single time, without fail, just like they had once done to watch James and Severus fight, a crowd would gather, and this was the exact case on a warm June afternoon, only this time, it wasn’t just James and Lily. 

The fifth years had just finished their Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. and most of the year had taken to laying out on the grounds to get some air before their transfiguration exam later that afternoon. On one side of the grounds, under the shade of their usual tree, was Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, and James Potter, lounging away lazily as James played with a Golden Snitch he had nicked from the Quidditch storage cupboard. On the opposite side of the grounds at the edge of the lake, sat Severus Snape, entirely engrossed in reading over his O.W.L. paper to notice a single thing around him.  

The sunlight was dazzling on the smooth surface of the lake, on the bank of which the group of laughing girls who had just left the Great Hall were sitting with shoes and socks off, cooling their feet in the water. Amongst the group, sat Lily Evans, and her fellow dorm-mates Marlene McKinnon, Alice Prewett, Dorcas Meadowes and Mary MacDonald. Sirius had just finished berating James for playing with the Snitch when James noticed Snape on the other side of the lake.  

“This’ll liven you up, Padfoot,” James said quietly. “Look who it is…” 

Sirius’ head turned, eyeing Snape like a dog that had just scented a rabbit.  

"Excellent,” he said softly. “Snivellus.” 

Snape was on his feet, stowing the O.W.L. paper in his bag as he made his way across the grass. Sirius and James stood up, making their way for Snape while Remus and Peter remained in their place under the tree.  

“All right, Snivellus?” James asked Snape loudly.  

Reacting like he had been jolted by lightning, Snape dropped his bag, and plunged his hand into his robes for his wand. Snape's wand was halfway into the air when James yelled, _“Expelliarmus!”_ and Snape’s wand flew twelve feet in the air and landed in the grass with a thud.  

A loud bark of laughter could be heard from Sirius, before he shouted, _“Impedimenta!”_ and Snape was suddenly knocked off his feet on his way to retrieve his fallen wand.  

Students all around had gathered to watch, much like they always did when James and Sirius got into another one of their altercations with Snape. They were edging closer to see what was going on, some apprehensive, others entertained.  

Snape lay on the ground, breathing heavily as he stared longingly at his discarded wand a few feet away. James and Sirius advanced on him, wands up, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water’s edge as he went. Peter was now on his feet, watching hungrily, edging around Remus to get a better look at what his friends were doing.  

“How’d the exam go, Snivelly?” James taunted, a sneer on his face as he looked down upon Snape.  

“I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment,” Sirius began viciously. “There’ll be great grease marks all over it, they won’t be able to read a word.”  

Several members of the crowd that had gathered laughed, while Peter let out a shrill snigger. Snape was trying to get up, to make any move to get away from his tormentors, but the jinx Sirius had used on him was still impeding his movements. He was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.  

“You – wait,” he panted, staring up at James with a look of pure disgust. “You – wait…”  

“Wait for what?” Sirius asked coolly. “What’re you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose on us?”  

Snape let out a string of swear word and hexes, but his wand being ten feet away, nothing happened.  

“Wash out your mouth,” James shouted coldly. _“Scourgify!”_

Pink bubbles begun to foam at Snape’s mouth at once, the froth covering his lips and causing him to gag.  

“Leave him ALONE!” A voice shouted from behind James and Sirius.  

James’ head whipped around at once, his hand jumping up to his hair on instinct as the sight of Lily Evans came into view, a look of pure loathing on her face. Her thick red hair was fanned about her messily, and her green eyes ablaze with anger.  

“All right, Evans?” James asked, the tone of his voice suddenly lower than it had been a moment before.  

“Leave him alone,” Lily repeated, looking at James with great dislike. “What's he done to you?”

“Well,” began James, appearing to deliberate the point, “it’s more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean,”  

The crowd that had gathered laughed at James’ comment, causing a smirk to grow on his smug face. Sirius and Peter threw James a triumphant look, laughing at what he had said, but the look on Lily’s face only grew angrier.  

“You think you’re funny,” Lily began coldly. “But you’re just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone.”  

“I will if you go out with me, Evans,” James replied quickly, as if it were instinct. “Go on… Go out with me, and I’ll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again.”  

The look that Lily answered with was one of pure disgust, meanwhile the Impediment Jinx on Snape was wearing off behind them. He was crawling toward his fallen wand, spitting out soap as he went.  

“I wouldn’t go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid,” shot Lily, and for one second, one single second, she could have sworn a flash of hurt crossed James’ features.  

“Bad luck, Prongs,” Sirius said briskly, turning back to Snape. “OY!”  

But before he could react, Snape had directed his wand straight at James; there was a flash of light, and a gash appeared on the side of James’ face, splattering his robes with blood. The crowd around them erupted into panicked expressions, and horrified shouts. Out of all of their rows, out of every fight, things had never escalated so rapidly. James whirled about; a second flash of light later, and Snape was hanging upside down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs, and a pair of greying underpants.  

People in the crowd begun to cheer, entertained with the way James had turned things around in his favour with Snape hanging by his ankle. Sirius, James, and Peter roared with laughter at the sight.  

“Let him down!” Lily cried, looking up at her best friend with a horrified expression on her face.  

“Certainly,” James said as he jerked his hand upward causing Snape to fall into a crumpled heap on the ground. Disentangling himself, he got to his feet, wand up, but Sirius reacted faster. 

“ _Petrificus Totalus,_ ” he hissed, and Snape keeled over once more, rigid as a board.  

 “LEAVE HIM ALONE!” Lily shouted, angrier than ever now, her own wand was out, James and Sirius eyeing it warily.  

They were very aware of her skills at duelling and James had been on the receiving end of a hex or two from her on multiple occasions, and it was no joking matter.  

“Ah, Evans, don’t make me hex you,” said James earnestly.  

“Take the curse off him, then!” She shouted.  

Sighing heavily, James turned to Snape and muttered the counter-curse as Snape’s body began to move again.  

“There you go,” he said as Snape struggled to stand, “you’re lucky Evans was here, Snivellus—“ 

“I don’t need help from a filthy little mud-blood like her!” Snape shouted, and at once, the crowd went silent.  

Never, in a million years, had they thought Snape would say something like that to Lily. Not because he wasn’t the type, he was, but he and Lily had been best friends since before they even attended Hogwarts, and as prejudiced as he was, Lily had always appeared to be the exception.  

“Fine,” Lily began coolly, “I won’t bother you in future. And I’d wash your pants if I were you, Snivellus.” 

“Apologize to Evans!” James suddenly roared, rounding back on Snape, gesturing his wand threateningly. 

“I don’t want you to make him apologize,” Lily shouted, full attention on James. “You’re as bad as he is…” 

“What?” James yelped, looking at her with pure disbelief. “I’d NEVER call you a – you-know-what!”  

“Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you’ve just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can – I’m surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK!” she shouted at James, all of her pent up anger exploding out of her violently.  

Turning on her heel, she hurried away, trying to get back to the castle as fast as she possibly could before the tears threatened to fall. In the distance behind her, James was still shouting after her.  

“Evans!” He shouted, trying to gain her attention. “Hey, EVANS!”  

But she was too focused on trying not to cry that she didn’t even hear him. Her thoughts were a jumble inside of her head, her stomach twisting in uncomfortable knots with each step. For years, she had defended him to her own friends in Gryffindor. She had spoken highly of him to teachers, to her parents, even to people she barely knew. It was her own determination that allowed her to believe he was still the same guy he always had been for so long. She kept telling herself that he was the same old Sev that taught her magic in the park down Spinner’s End, despite the crowd he hung out with, or the rumours she had heard.  

But the second the words were out of his mouth, and she saw the panicked look on his face, she realized that he was no longer her Sev. It wasn’t until the vile, awful slur was out of his lips that she allowed the truth behind everything seep in. She allowed herself to see the way he acted with his Slytherin friends, and towards the other students of the school. She allowed herself to hear some of the backwards comments he had made about muggles throughout the years, comments she had brushed off. Finally, as soon as the word mudblood was out of his mouth, she allowed herself to see that he hadn’t been the same nine-year-old boy she had met in a park for a very long time.  

By the time she made it back to her dorm after storming away from the scene by the lake, she was in complete and utter disarray. Her robes were a mess, her hair was matted, and her cheeks were stained red from the tears and streaked with mascara. She kept replaying his words over in her head, and imagining the careless expression on his face as he said it, as if it were second nature to refer to a muggle-born with such a volatile word. It was all James bloody Potter’s fault. If he hadn’t been taunting Severus then none of this would have happened. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself anyways.  

If she had been honest with herself after that afternoon by the lake, then perhaps she would have realized that it wasn’t really James’ fault at all. In fact, Severus had probably said much worse things about her when she wasn’t around. It was all just so much easier to blame on Potter.  

But while Lily was in her room, allowing Severus’ words to seep into her brain and drive her to insanity, James was still down by the lake, trying to digest what had just happened.

He had moved to follow her, worried about the way she had run off. But Marlene had rounded on him immediately, holding her hand up to stop him, before she and the rest of their dorm-mates ran after her.

After the Gryffindor girls had disappeared, he had tried to return to tormenting Snape to distract him from the way Lily had looked at him, but everything suddenly felt different. Tormenting Snape suddenly wasn’t as fun as it had been five minutes earlier, and he couldn’t get the disgusted look of Lily’s out of his mind. The crowd grew uncomfortable after what Snape had said, and one by one separated, until eventually James and Sirius gave up on Snape all together and returned to their spot beneath the beech tree, but everything just felt off.  

He and Snape had had fights like this before. Several, in fact. But at no point, had they ever gotten so out of hand. Between the cut on the side of his face from Snape, to what he had called Lily, none of their fights had ever ended so badly. Not necessarily physically, because several had ended up with broken bones in the hospital for both of them before. But by the time Lily was out of sight, Snape looked just as helpless as James felt, and no amount of torturing Snape would fix that.  

It was sitting under the beech tree, thinking about the mess that had accumulated between him and Lily that James finally allowed her words to sink in. His tormenting Severus, and his asking her out constantly wasn’t charming to her. It wasn’t funny, or impressive, or cool to her at all. It disgusted her, and so did he. He wasn’t gaining any ground by tormenting other people, nor by trying to show off for her as much as humanly possible. It just made her hate him even more, and then, all at once, all of the things Lily had ever said to him came flooding back.  

_“You’re incorrigible, Potter! No I will not go out with you!”_

_“You’re bloody mental if you think I would ever go to Hogsmeade with you!”_

_“Maybe if you weren’t such an arrogant, intolerable toerag then more people would be able to stand you!”_

_“Why don’t you do both of us a favor and just bloody leave me alone!”_

Then suddenly, James wondered why he had even attempted asking her out in the first place. They had never been friends, they hadn’t even been acquaintances. They didn’t even get along. In fact, the only time they ever spoke was when she was shouting at him. He had barely paid her any attention at all before fifth year. So why had he done it?  

It was then, sitting by the lake, Remus’ head in a book, Sirius shouting across the grounds to the girls, and Peter hiding in embarrassment, that James realized it was time to move on. It was time for him to realize that Lily was not going to change her opinion of him, and as much time as he had spent trying to convince her otherwise, she certainly wouldn’t ever like him. So it was that day, right before their transfiguration exam, that James Potter swore he would get over Lily Evans, he just needed to figure out how.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos & comments are greatly appreciated as always, and if you want to scream at me on tumblr, feel free. 
> 
> @habitatforhufflepuffs

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment & let me know what you think & if anything seems really weird or out of character & let me know. Also let me know if anything doesn't make sense so I can fix it. 
> 
> I wrote some of the later chapters of this fic first, so I may have screwed up a little when I went back and wrote the earlier stuff, so please let me know it that's the case. 
> 
> Thank you!


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